Attrition Rate Of Freshers - How To Find People Who Will Stay Longer?

Hello everyone,

Can anyone help me with the best ways to tap into the fresh talent available? What are the best practices to hire freshers? I've been continuously attempting to find fresh candidates who would also stay for longer in the organization. How can we be sure who will stay for how long?

Please provide your valuable comments.

Hi Mr. Vinayak,

My experience says you can find fresh talent in colleges. I have been doing this for quite some time and have been successful so far. However, it depends on the industry in which you want to hire.

When it comes to retaining candidates for a longer period, this largely depends on the field in which the candidate will be working and, most importantly, your company policies such as compensation, work culture, management team, etc.

Regards,
Alex

Hello Alex,

Thank you very much for sharing your thoughts. I truly appreciate it! I agree that hiring from colleges is indeed a proven way to connect with fresh talent. The duration of their stay with the organization depends on factors such as culture, compensation, etc., but students often do not understand this before securing the job. It is usually an uninformed job choice for freshers, and this aspect applies to every industry, in my opinion.

I'm considering if there is a way we can (even remotely) provide students with some insight into the company's culture before the final hiring process. This approach could help both the student and the organization gain a better understanding of each other.

Please share your thoughts.

Regards,
Vinayak

Hi Vinayak,

I follow the following steps whenever I recruit students from campus:

1. We play a small video about the company, which includes information about the company's culture, existing status of the organization, future plans, etc.
2. We make the package very clear to the students.
3. We interact with the students for some time, allowing them to clear any doubts they might have about the organization, their future in the company, etc.

The above steps help us filter the students even before we start the recruitment process. Only interested candidates would apply.

Regards,
Alex

Hi Vinayak,

I understand your point about uninformed career choices made by students. I would also suggest the same points highlighted by Alex, and also to hire from campuses. A healthy pre-placement talk (which is very common these days) with students should resolve most of these issues. If you are very clear about the nature of the work profile, then explain it to students in those sessions.

I strongly recommend being honest with students about the work culture, compensation, growth, and most importantly, what they're going to do in their day-to-day job. Make them visualize a picture of themselves working with the company and let them decide if they'd like to do this 5 years down the line. I've seen employers discussing some flaunting and irrelevant topics to attract candidates in PPTs. They'd tell about the next steps of business growth or targets for the next year their company has set, or maybe some of the subsidiaries they've acquired in the past. How does this even matter to engineering students who are being hired for maintenance of machinery? Then they complain that only 2 out of 5 stayed. That's because you had never told them about their work.

Just tell the truth, even if it's a hard sell. Sugarcoat it, but do not escape. I am sure if they feel interested, they would maintain the same energy in the next rounds of the interview after knowing how their life with this company would someday be. If they don't hold the same energy, they'd probably drop. Just to conclude, those effective sessions with students can make it more of an informed career choice.

Regards,

Megha

Hi Alex, Megha,

Thank you for the valuable comments. I just wanted to mention that we are already implementing all of these practices, which are very common everywhere. We have a case study round followed by a few quizzes and finally an HR round (and a telecon with VP/MD in some special cases). I posed this question to see if anyone is using other practices too, or if everyone is following the same tradition.

As Megha mentioned, I also agree that it would help make the career choice more informed if we enable candidates to visualize working in that profile. The case study round ensures this aspect for us. However, I have still observed instances where people do not enjoy the job, even if they excel at it. I am pondering if there could be a way for candidates to determine for themselves whether they love the work or not, before we offer substantial salaries, provide training, and then face quick turnover.

Thanks again,
Vinayak

Hi Guys,

I think this is why the HR round is there, right? At the time of a personal interview, an HR has to be more like a psychologist and judge if the candidate is really interested in the profile. Why does he intend to join, what drives him to love his work, and how long would he stay? What are his plans, where do his interests lie, etc.? Judge based on his answers, based on his portfolio. Judge all of them and hire those you think would stay and would perform well too. Stay on the safer side. Recruiters do (and will) face this problem which leads to attrition rate. This is one of the many reasons why they have probation periods too.

Cheers

Greetings to everyone!

Uninformed career choice, I think, is one big problem in India. In my opinion, the best way to hire freshers and avoid attrition would be to hire interns for your organization. I was wondering if you have explored this option. According to one survey, 37% of attrition is caused due to ill-informed career choices.

Energy, innovation, quick learning, the habit of getting things done, and there is a lot interns can add to your organization. At the same time, the employer and candidate both get time to analyze if they are a good fit for each other. Besides, hiring interns is always a safer side than hiring an employee. I think this is the best solution to tap and retain the fresh minds in your organization. I can say this as we (Internship | Summer Training | Paid Internship | Summer Internship) have helped 6000+ employers in finding interns online, and almost all find this a very well-informed way of hiring.

Regards,

Hello Vinayak,

Having gone through all the replies that my learned friends from the forum had to say, I believe there is one small thing that remains not added herein. We all, having toiled in the HR and Staffing arena, know well that the choices that the freshers mostly make are uninformed and neatly undetermined. It is as simple as someone craving for a steady cash flow gets a job. In campus interviews, the job lands into their laps pretty easily, and all they have to do is make a choice between the available job choices in front of them. Now, the thing that counts while attracting these unbaked talents to a particular firm is either the Brand Tag they possess or the monetary compensation the firms are providing them with. Later, they might realize that they are entitled to way more than they are presently reaping or may think the work culture is not amiable and considerate of their efforts. Result: They hop onto another job!

Well, you cannot always pay them the most, but we can always try to develop a sense of brotherhood in these new recruits for the firm. There are many proven ways to do it. What works normally, as Megha said, is sugarcoating the dull-looking scenarios that they presume to get into in the near future. Counsel them.

Being in the staffing business and seeing the trajectory of these recruits closely, I recommend doing one of these:

- For the first two appraisals, if you think the candidate really stands out, appraise them well. Add materialistic serials like a cellphone (for someone in Sales/Marketing), Laptop/Tablet (For someone in IT/ITES).

- Add a pseudo-hierarchy in your firm. A fresher who joins as Trainee, if gets promoted to Assistant Lead/Assistant Jr. Manager would certainly develop a sense of gratitude which is meant to pay off well.

- Be vocal about your needs with them, keep the communication going, and always involve them in meetings and seminars. This will make them responsible.

- To start, be the mentor they want you to be. Set a barometer for them and give them an insight into the industry so that they learn new things from a pro every day at their workplace. Respect for superiors breeds love for the firm.

Having said all these, I would also like to bring to the notice the fact that there is always a pool of passive candidates who have passed a year past and are jobless. Hunt them down! This chunk of candidate pool is desperate for employment and less craving for payments. They know the worth of adding work experience to their respective profiles, and their innovative skill set is as untapped as the freshers.

Wishing you all the luck for your endeavors.

In today's scenario, hiring freshers is an interesting topic for all HR professionals. If you recruit from top-notch colleges, freshers may view working in your company as a stepping stone for better placement after spending a few months. The best approach to onboard freshers into your company without high attrition rates is to attract above-average candidates who are likely to stay longer. Look for honesty and sincerity in their work ethic rather than focusing solely on intelligence. This approach will facilitate easier integration of freshers into your organization's requirements.

Hello Vinayak Khare,

Radhika Bhatia & Sajal Kumar have given you very realistic & practical inputs to work on.

It's no use blaming the freshers or even expecting them to understand FULLY whatever you say in the Pre-Placement talks/presentations—at this point in their life & career, the language they understand is different from what we are used to.

When I say 'understand FULLY', what I mean is the complete consequences & import of what's being said—not just the literal meanings.

Even MNCs face the problems that you mention—despite the brand image they have.

From an employer's perspective, please note that it's TOUGHER to psychologically judge a fresher than any lateral candidate.

As Radhika Bhatia mentioned, suggest focusing on the 'WHY' of the fresher's decision to join you.

I would even suggest going farther back in time—why did he/she choose the particular specialization in college in the first place—everyone has unique reasons. If you get the reply 'for money', 'friends' suggestions, etc., you can be at least 90% sure that this individual CAN'T make up his/her mind on his/her own [at least at this point]. The chances of him/her leaving soon are high.

As a general thumb rule, if it takes 10 minutes to psychologically judge a lateral candidate, be prepared to spend at least 20 minutes when judging a fresher [not counting the time needed for technical evaluation during interviews]. After all, that category is still evolving—both mentally & professionally.

And if you can, you may also need to double up as a career counselor—though how seriously the fresher would take your words/guidance is doubtful, as you would be VIEWED as part of the Hiring process. Quite often, that crowd gives far more weight to their classmates/peers than to a professional, however lopsided & misplaced it may be.

All the Best.

Regards,

TS